Tampere, Finland

 We left Helsinki for a 2 hour train ride to Tampere, Finland’s third largest city with a population of approximately 250,000 people. It was recently the site of the 2023 IIHF World Championship final which Canada won. The Finns love their hockey. We stayed right beside the NOKIA arena and wish we had realized it was on as we could have rearranged our travels to be here, but such is life! 

Besides staying by the hockey arena we also were across from the bus station which was still busy late into the evening because in Finland this time of year there is only 3 hours of darkness and not that dark even then. This picture was taken at 11:45pm. It gets a little dark by 12ish and then at 3am it is fully light again. It takes a little getting used to what time is it really? 

We spent a few extra days in Tampere as we were getting to the end of our trip and we decided that we didn’t want any more travel days. It was a lovely city to end our journey through Northern Europe.

It is situated between two large lakes and the town is separated by a big river which runs through the middle of town and is also used to produce power. All along the river are walkways with lots of places to sit and we would often have our lunch there as the weather was very warm.

The river played an important role in the history of the town since Finlayson Textile Company,

the largest textile factories in Europe were located here in the 1800s with many of their smokestacks still intact. 

Finlayson’s textile production was quite varied: the mill produced many grades of fabrics and an enormous selection of yarn, clothing fabrics, and interior-design textiles. These operations required a large number of workers. At the peak of the production, at the turn of the 20th century, the mill had more than 3,100 employees in Tampere. The company’s production along the Tammerkoski rapids came to an end in the early 1990s, and all of its production in Tampere finally ceased in 1999. 

After they outlived their purpose the city redeveloped the area into residential and commercial properties and it is a very pleasant neighbourhood. 

There were houses provided to workers that are still residences today…

And a church where we caught a wedding party just leaving…

We visited a museum that gave us the history of the Finlayson mills and it was quite interesting to give a glimpse of life in Tampere at that time. 

One of the most intriguing displays was a miniature of the mills complete with people and machines of that time.

In this museum complex there was also the Finland Hockey Hall of Fame which Don really enjoyed. He tried his hand at scoring but with no luck! 

The Finns consider Jari Kuri to be the greatest Finnish hockey player to ever play in the NHL, here is his jersey…

Tampere is also considered the Sauna Capital of Finland with 55 public saunas in the city. One afternoon we took the bus to visit one of the oldest in the city established in 1905. It was a beautiful day so we go into the coolest sauna at 120 degrees and when someone throws water on the coals it immediately goes up 10 degrees and it feels as if you are burning.

After that you go jump in the lake which is 11C and then sit in the sun. You do this as often as you like and I must say after the first plunge it is refreshing and I can see why the Finns love their saunas. 

Don was the first in…

And this was me scrambling out after my first dip…it was cold! But after 3 or 4 dips it is wasn’t too bad! 

Since we had hot days here everywhere we went the Finns were out enjoying the sun and water…

There was also a very interesting Lenin museum in Tampere as it was the site of the first meeting of Lenin and Stalin and where they drew up plans for the new Soviet Union. 

Tampere with all of its’ industrial workers was ripe for a workers revolution so was very supportive of the founders of the Russian revolution.

Stalin and Lenin…

With Finland and Russia being neighbours there has been an on off relationship with each other, sometimes friends and sometimes enemies. 

This museum explored this relationship as well as the lives of Lenin, Stalin right up to Putin. 

Anyone want to be Lenin’s driver? 

Like most all of the other cities we have visited on this trip Tampere is also a very green city with lots of parks and trails to explore…

This group were listening to a musician give a recital in the park…

Wide tree lined streets everywhere…

Lots of fountains…

This park was not far from the Center of town and was huge…

Just another day on the trail…

On one of our walks we climbed an Observation Tower to have a look at the area…

Here you can see one of the lakes where Tampere is located, Finland has over 188,000 lakes and Tampere is the beginning of the Lake District.

Some scenes around the city…

Some of the older buildings in the Center of town…

This was the Workers Monument…

Lots of farmers markets…

Newer residences by the river, again with lots of walking trails nearby…

Lots of naked men around the city…

The theatre built in 1912…

The main square outside of City Hall is a outdoor cafe with lots of food trucks…

People enjoying the afternoon sun…

Brightly decorated streets…

After a relaxing stay in Tampere we took the train back to the Helsinki airport for our flight back home. This trip took us across 6 countries in one of the most interesting regions of the world we have visited. We have been very impressed with Northern Europe, with strong governance, generous social programs and an overall good standard of living. These countries often come out on top of the World’s Happiness Index and it is easy to see why. People we stayed with, people we met all told us they pay high taxes but they trust their governments to provide what is needed and more. Overall, another great trip in the books! 

Helsinki, Finland

 We arrived on the ferry from Estonia, only a little over 2 hours and it was crowded with weekend partiers from Helskini. We saw so many people in the ship carrying back boxes of beer and liquor on wheeled carts. Apparently beer is so much cheaper in Estonia than Finland that people do beer runs! 

Trams were waiting right outside the ferry terminal and we got a quick ride to our AirBnb just outside the city centre…

Helsinki is the capital city of Finland with about one million population including the urban area. It was founded by the Swedish King Gustav in 1550. Finland has been a part of Sweden and also has been ruled by Russia, but gained its’ independence in 1917.

Helsinki has a different feel from the other capital cities we visited and I think it may be the influence of many years under Russian control. The main square called Senate Square has the Helsinki Lutheran Cathedral which was built in 1830 -1852 to honour the Grand Duke of Finland, Tsar Nicholas of Russia whose statue is in the centre of the square…

On the roof of the Catheral are statues of the twelve apostles holding different objects in their hands…

This is Bartholomew who holds a knife symbolizing his tragic death…

John the Apostle, the patron saint of bookmakers is holding a book…

It is not ornate inside but has wonderful details…

The Square is surrounded by other buildings of the same period including the Government palace which houses the Prime Minister’s office…

Not far from the square on a hill overlooking it is Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral, the largest Orthodox Church in Northern and Western Europe which makes for an imposing sight. After Helsinki became the capital of Finland, the government of the time imposed a tax specifically for the two main churches…the Orthodox and the Lutheran which gave them much prestige and power.

The interior which is quite ornate…

There are also many modern churches in Helsinki that were interesting to visit. This is the Rock Church built into the side of a hill and a good example of Finnish architecture…

The shafts let in natural light and the walls are exposed rocks. 

It is one of the most visited sights in Helsinki due to its’ unique design. Here is what the copper roof looks like outside…

Helsinki is known as a city with great design and this Chapel of Silence which is located in one of the busiest parts of the city was designed in 2012 as part of a world wide design contest. It is non denominational and is promoted as a place to come and reflect in silence. Very unique design, but didn’t get inside as it was closed when we were there…

Another great building nearby is the library…

The Finns are some of the most literate people in the world with half of the population visiting the library every month.

This building is beautiful…

It lies opposite another striking  building the Finnish Parliament…

 Besides great architecture Helsinki is filled with colour…

A scene from Market Square which is set up all year long down by the harbour…

A Marimeko store window…this Finnish store is quite famous for colorful clothes and home design…

A great place for a meal with a view…

All over the city were brightly coloured benches and flower pots…

Finland is a northern country with cold winters so maybe all the colour the rest of the year makes up for that? 

Helsinki also has a lot of green spaces which we enjoyed…

 

We ate our lunch one day in this sunny spot…

Lots of parks and spaces to sit and enjoy the day…

A great Market Hall as well…

So much good looking fish, especially salmon…

What about a spoonful of caviar for 15 CAD?

The city also has a vast network of walking and biking paths that lead all over the city so one day we set out for a long walk which led us to different parts of the city…

To one of the city beaches…

Huge well kept cemeteries…

Lots of little cafes…

Wide tree lined sidewalks…

Wild roses by one of the lakes…

Small churches…

Helsinki has a lot of coastline so many marinas…

Peaceful ponds…

Also passed the Opera House which is located by one of the bays….

By the time we were finished our step count was 17000 for the day and we were tired, but a wonderful way to explore the city.

Our last day there we took the ferry over to Suomenlinna Fortress…

The view back to the city as we were leaving…

Lots of summer homes on the islands we passed…

Our first glance at the Fortress…

This fortress began construction in 1748 when Finland was part of the Kingdom of Sweden. It was built to protect the city of Helsinki against warring armies but fell to Russia in 1808 and Finland is made an autonomous part of the Russian Empire. It continued as an active base right up to World War II.

We decided to walk counter clockwise around the island as there were less people on the path, we didn’t anticipate being forced off the path by these families who were everywhere…

They look similar to Canada Geese but they are called Barnacle Geese and the babies are balls of fluff…

The Fortress is built from rock found on the island and is made into an irregular shape…

There are many well preserved buildings within the Fortress that stand today…

We spent a few hours walking around the island from end to end and seeing all the historic buildings.

Suomenlinna was added in 1991 to the UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites as an outstanding monument to military architecture…

There is a War Museum which we visited that gave a great history lesson on the Finnish Defence Forces and their on and off relationship with Russia. There was also the Finnish Civil War in 1918 which was one of the most bitter civil wars of that era. It was fought between the Reds and the Whites, those loyal to Russia and those not.

This is the Kings Gate built in 1753 and is the ceremonial entrance to the Fortress…

A submarine used in World War 11 that was open to the public to tour…

 

There are lots of cafes and restaurants on the island as it receives over a million visitors a year…

The bridge joining two sides of the island…

There are 800 residents living here year round with a school for the children. These houses were in a peaceful cove…

It was an interesting way to learn more Finnish history.

On the way back we saw one of the newer saunas built on the harbour with two pools. Sauna is very much a part of Finnish culture so we will look for one at our next stop…

Helsinki was our introduction to Finland and we enjoyed our time here, the people we met have all been very helpful and polite, though reserved. 

We look forward to at least one more stop in Finland before heading home.